A large segment of the population currently consumes beverages. However, in certain segments of the population, consuming beverages can produce negative symptoms. Such negative symptoms can include facial flush, nasal congestion, voice change, headache and/or allergy symptoms, and in some cases, an extreme allergic reaction resulting in death.
The noxious constituents causing these symptoms, however, can be naturally occurring endogenous byproducts, and, can play a beneficial role in the fermentation process to produce certain beverages, such as certain alcoholic beverages. For instance, sulfites can cause asthma and allergies, but, sulfites are naturally occurring byproducts of yeast fermentation and helps delay spoilage of the beverage. Histamines, another naturally occurring fermentation byproduct, trigger headaches in some people (e.g., with diamine oxidase deficiency). Tyramine can cause an increase in blood pressure, which triggers headaches in some people, and, tyramine is another fermentation byproduct. Tannins may trigger the release of serotonin, which can cause headaches in some people, and, tannins are components of the wood containers in which beverages can be fermented and stored.
Consequently, because they are naturally occurring, and in some cases, beneficial, it can be undesirable to remove or prevent the formation of such noxious constituents during the fermentation process and subsequent storage of beverages. Alternatively, the removal of such noxious constituents from the final beverage product, e.g., just prior to consumption, can have adverse effects on the quality of the beverage. Non-limiting examples of such adverse effects include undesirable changes to the taste, aroma, or color of the beverage, such as wine.
Accordingly, what is needed in the art is a simplified consumer-friendly treatment of beverages to reduce the effects of noxious constituents that does not suffer from the disadvantages associated with the conventional treatments discussed above.